The Charge

See and sign with baby!

The Case

This was about the time that I thought I was done with Baby Einstein. I have
always liked this series of toddler DVDs. My daughter and I watched them, and
she developed her fascination with the world—animals, outer space,
language, art—in part from our time together talking about what appeared
on screen. While she has since graduated to Disney's television series Little
Einsteins, my son has now inherited the ten or so Baby Einstein discs she
used to watch. And all the music CDs. And the toys. And the many books. (This
very evening, he demanded I read him a Baby Einstein book about cats six
times. Did you know that cats are warm and soft to hold?)

Because we already have so much Baby Einstein stuff around the house, I have
not been keeping up with the most recent releases. I know that Disney has
steered the DVD series into narrower topic areas: body parts, the seasons,
orchestral instruments. The formula still remains generally the same, with
friendly puppets, happy children (for the first few years, founder Julie
Aigner-Clark's own tots), and brightly-colored toys parading around to twinkly
classical music. I was curious to see whether Baby Einstein has changed now that
Disney has so aggressively expanded the franchise into many other product areas:
bath books, party goods, even sunblock lotion.

The major difference with My First Signs is the presence of actual
adult human beings: actress Marlee Matlin, and lots of parents practicing signs
with their children. Puppets usually don't have fingers, so I guess the
producers figured that the kids would need help learning the basics of ASL. My
own experience has been that American Sign Language is excellent for children
still developing their language skills. Try dealing with an 18-month-old child
strapped to a booster at the dinner table. Do you want more? Do you want a
drink? Another piece of banana—or is it chicken this time?

The children are a bit older than the toddlers usually playing in these
videos, probably because they were more proficient at ASL. The classical music
is still there (Schumann, Haydn, and such). Lessons are divided thematically,
dealing with names of family members (like mommy and daddy), meal time words
(like drink, cereal, and more), play time (like help, ball, and friend), and bed
time (bath, story, and so forth). The program is not a comprehensive effort to
teach your child how to communicate with sign language. Rather, it provides just
enough vocabulary that a little one still trying to form words can be
understood. If this means less crying, throwing toys and food, and general
frustration—from you or your child—then it is well worth the
effort.

The bonus section includes Matlin (with Julie Clark's voice dubbed in)
sharing two additional sign language lessons, one grouped by opposites
(boy/girl, up/down) and one with more advanced words (potty, hurt, love). There
is an additional practice lesson for the sixteen words included in the main
program as well, though this rushes by pretty quickly and is probably intended
to refresh parents more than their kids. The extra puppet sketches might amuse
the little ones, but they have negligible educational value compared to the main
program. Instead of a message about the Baby Einstein company, as we used to get
on these discs, instead Disney includes a plug for Little Einsteins.
Given how easily Disney could have used this entire series to plug their own
products (the only Disney reference I recall ever seeing in any of these DVDs is
a two-second shot of an EPCOT fountain in Baby Neptune, and you'd only
recognize it if you'd been there many times), I suppose they can be granted one
commercial.

More than other Baby Einstein DVDs, First Signs is not meant as a
babysitter. These sign language lessons are of no value if you do not watch
along, learn the signs yourself, and practice them with your child. Even if you
already have a few Baby Einstein DVDs and thought you did not need any more, you
will find First Signs one of the most flat-out useful entries in the
series. And if you do not own any Baby Einstein discs, this should be the first
one you pick up. Even if you don't think your little ones should watch
television at all, you might still consider picking this up so you can
learn sign language and teach your children. In short, First Signs may be
the most helpful and important product Baby Einstein has yet released. Even more
than the sunblock lotion.